


One Long Pause, Then You Begin

by tookumade



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-23
Updated: 2015-06-23
Packaged: 2018-04-03 18:37:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4110982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tookumade/pseuds/tookumade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There was a lot that they all wanted to say, but couldn’t find the words to, or maybe they simply didn’t need to: <i>‘I’m glad we went on this roadtrip together’</i>, and <i>‘you’re all pains in the asses and I wouldn’t swap you for anyone else, ever’</i>, and <i>‘it’s been a good three years’</i>, and <i>‘here’s to many more’</i>, and <i>‘thank you’</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	One Long Pause, Then You Begin

**Author's Note:**

  * For [grandAce](https://archiveofourown.org/users/grandAce/gifts).



> Happy Holiday Exchange, grandAce! I'm really sorry if this isn't what you're after - I got a little carried away with some bits... I hope you'll still enjoy this though. 0v0;;;
> 
> (this fic alternates scenes between present day and flashbacks - just in case it gets a little confusing!)

“We have to leave _now_ ,” Hanamaki hissed, “or my mother’s going to shove another twenty things that she thinks we’ll need into my bag.”  
  
“Oh, I don’t know,” said Matsukawa thoughtfully. “It’s pretty entertaining, watching you two duke it out over how much sunscreen to bring.”  
  
“ _You’re not helping!_ ”  
  
“At least she hasn’t brought up you not bringing enough pairs of underwear,” said Iwaizumi as Oikawa snorted with laughter beside him. “Although, we _could_ mention it…”  
  
“If it weren’t for the fact that you’re the only one who has his licence and therefore the only one who can drive us today, I’d throw you into the nearest river,” Hanamaki grumbled, and Iwaizumi just grinned.  
  
“ _You_ want to throw me into a river? I’d like to see you try.”  
  
“Takahiro!” His mother came running up to him with what looked like a mini sewing kit in her hand. “Just in case you rip any clothes–”  
  
“Okay, _now_ I know you’re just messing with me,” said Hanamaki, swatting away the sewing kit.  
  
His mother smiled. “You’re right, I am. I just thought your friends might find it entertaining.” She patted his cheek, and he stared at her, aghast, as his friends keeled over laughing appreciatively behind him. “Sorry to keep you waiting, boys; I’m done embarrassing him, now. First roadtrip together, how exciting! Drive safely, and have a lot of fun, all right? ”  
  
“We will, thank you,” said Oikawa, still laughing as the three bowed slightly to her, and Hanamaki begrudgingly allowed his mother to kiss his cheek and hug him. He threw his bag into the boot of the car when she let him go, and they all jumped in (Iwaizumi in the driver’s seat, Oikawa in the front passenger seat, and Hanamaki and Matsukawa in the back) and waved to her as Iwaizumi pulled out of the driveway.  
  
As they headed down the street, Matsukawa grinned and said, “Your mother is the _coolest_.”  
  
“Shut _up!_ ” Hanamaki leaned over and poked him and they promptly dissolved into a play-fight.  
  
“Less than twenty metres, and they’re already wrestling,” said Oikawa with an exaggerated sigh.  
  
“They’re always wrestling, though,” said Iwaizumi.  
  
“Who are you two, our parents?” said Hanamaki. “OW! Matsuka– you _shithead_ –”  
  
“So, the plan is,” said Oikawa loudly, studying the paper map in his hands as he tried to ignore their friends, “that we stop for snacks and a toilet break at Kurihara. After that, we’ll cross into Iwate Prefecture and drive until we reach Oshu, and then we’ll arrive at your aunt’s inn. We should get there by about midday at the latest, but your aunt told us to call her if we end up late, so she can arrange lunch for us.”  
  
“No problem. Oh, man, I hope she prepares grilled beef for us. She always marinated them so perfectly– WILL YOU STOP KICKING MY CHAIR, MATSUKAWA?”  
  
“He’s poking me,” said Matsukawa with an exaggerated whiny voice.  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“Iwaizumi,” said advisor Irihata, “take Matsukawa to the nurse’s office, will you?”  
  
“Sure.”  
  
“‘m _fine_ ,” Matsukawa mumbled through a wad of tissues pressed against his nose. “It’ll stop bleeding soon.”  
  
“I’m _really_ sorry,” said one of the students, looking mortified.  
  
“Matsukawa, go to the nurse’s office with Iwaizumi, just in case,” said Irihata patiently. “Hanamaki, he’ll live, so don’t worry. Go sit out for a few minutes and calm down, all right? Oikawa–”  
  
“I’ll sit with him,” said Oikawa cheerfully. They split up, with Iwaizumi dragging Matsukawa out of the gymnasium, and Oikawa dragging Hanamaki off the court.  
  
“What a first practice, huh?” said Iwaizumi when they were out of earshot. “That guy’s spike was pretty strong. I wonder which junior high he went to.”  
  
“Dunno,” said Matsukawa. “You guys though… Kitagawa Daiichi, wasn’t it?”  
  
“Yep.” Iwaizumi stood a little straighter, proudly. “Oikawa—the guy staying with him—was Best Setter at our last tournament.”  
  
“Ahh, no wonder he seemed familiar.”  
  
“How about you?”  
  
“I went to Yoshinari. We got beaten by Chidoriyama in the second round in my last tournament.”  
  
They continued making small talk, mostly about their volleyball playing back in junior high. Iwaizumi spoke more than Matsukawa, but Matsukawa always replied, and their chat was friendly and natural, all the way to the nurse’s office.  
  
“I don’t think I even need to see the school nurse anymore,” said Matsukawa, studying his bloodied tissues.  
  
“Irihata-san’s orders though,” said Iwaizumi sympathetically. “Ah, nope, you’re still bleeding.”  
  
“Ahh, _crap_. That guy’s gotta teach me how to spike that hard, what the heck.”  
  
“You can ask him to teach you. Maybe it can be, like, an apology for injuring you,” said Iwaizumi with a little grin as he pushed open the door to the nurse’s office. “Who knows, you two might end up being best friends.”  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“ _Please_ ,” Iwaizumi groaned, “no more singing _Let It Go_ , I’m begging you. My eardrums are going to bleed, my windows are going to crack, and the police will pull us over for noise pollution, and we’ll spend this roadtrip in a holding cell.”  
  
“Spoilsport,” Oikawa, Matsukawa, and Hanamaki chimed.  
  
“Once we become a famous singing trio, we’re gonna be like ‘Iwaizumi? Nope, never heard of him’, and then you’ll be sorry,” said Hanamaki.  
  
“Funny enough, I think I’ll live,” said Iwaizumi dryly.  
  
“ _No_ , Makki,” said Oikawa, turning from his place in the front passenger seat to give Hanamaki a scandalised look. “Iwa-chan’s supposed to be our manager!”  
  
“Nah, he’d scare away all our potential gigs,” said Hanamaki.  
  
“The three of you together sound like really drunk cats, so I doubt you’d be getting any gigs in the first place.”  
  
“See? _Terrible manager_.”  
  
“Sing with us, Iwa-chan! Get into the spirit!”  
  
“I am not singing _Let It Go_. Don’t you have any One OK Rock songs or something?”  
  
“This is not a One OK Rock moment, this is a Disney song moment,” said Matsukawa.  
  
“And people say _you’re_ the mature one,” said Iwaizumi.  
  
“I’m cutting loose today. Sing with us!”  
  
“No.”  
  
“Fine, no monthly gifts for you when we hit the big stage.”  
  
They burst into another chorus from _Let It Go_ —warbled, more like. Iwaizumi winced as Oikawa let out a particularly high and off-key note that sent Matsukawa and Hanamaki giggling madly in the back seats, and leaving Oikawa to continue on solo, shamelessly, and unable to make up his mind as to exactly which octave he was trying to sing in.  
  
“An hour and a half of driving, and all I’m gonna get is _Let It Go_ ,” Iwaizumi muttered. “Why am I friends with you guys?”  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“This training camp sucks,” Hanamaki whispered as he joined Oikawa, Iwaizumi, and Matsukawa, who were sitting around Iwaizumi’s futon and chatting, a few minutes before lights out. He huddled up next to Matsukawa and sulked a little. “The third years are serious jackasses. It’s summer and it’s stinkin’ hot, but they still keep insisting we go faster with the cleaning, and they don’t help _at all_ , and vice-captain Kobayashi-san keeps yelling at me and calling me useless, just because I dropped that bucket _once_.”  
  
“Kobayashi-san would trip over his own feet if you told him to walk in a straight line,” Matsukawa murmured as he patted his back sympathetically.  
  
“I hope our next captain and vice-captain are a lot nicer,” said Hanamaki. “Even you would be a way better captain, Oikawa.”  
  
“I… think that was meant to be a compliment, but the ‘even you’ bit kind of makes me sad…”  
  
“There’s not a lot we can do about it,” said Iwaizumi. “They’ll be gone, soon, anyway; they’ve only got the Spring High left.”  
  
“And good riddance,” Hanamaki muttered.  
  
“Come on,” said Matsukawa, “let’s get some sleep. They can’t complain if we wake up early and get the chores done in time, right?”  
  
“They’ll find _something_ to whinge about,” said Hanamaki. But he and Matsukawa bade Oikawa and Iwaizumi good night, and crawled back to their respective futons.  
  
“What are you thinking about?” asked Iwaizumi when he caught Oikawa staring pensively down at his pillow. Oikawa’s eyes flickered towards him.  
  
“You can learn a lot from the third years,” he said thoughtfully. “Like what not to do.”  
  
Iwaizumi smiled slightly. “Is this for when you become captain in the future?”  
  
“We don’t need to have the title of captain, in order to be good leaders,” said Oikawa, returning his small smile. “We just need to not treat our teammates like dirt. Anyway, good night, Iwa-chan.”  
  
“Good night.”  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
Their stopover at Kurihara involved a welcome stretch of their legs, getting lost trying to find a toilet for public use, swinging by a sweets store to satisfy a sudden collective craving for gummy candy, Hanamaki getting distracted by a bakery that sold profiteroles, Matsukawa getting distracted by three stray cats, all of whom immediately took a liking to him (“No, we _can’t_ take them with us, Matsukawa!”), Oikawa getting distracted by a gift shop’s “ _adorable_ penguin figurines! Look, they look just like you, Iwa-chan!” and Iwaizumi trying to keep everyone from wandering off.  
  
“I just realised,” said Matsukawa to Iwaizumi, “that we should probably get a gift for your aunt, as thanks for letting us stay at her inn for free.”  
  
Iwaizumi nodded thoughtfully. “That’s a good idea. Any suggestions?”  
  
“There were some really nice-looking cake things, back at the sweets store,” said Hanamaki slowly.  
  
“We don’t know what flavours she’d like though,” said Oikawa reasonably. “How about something more permanent, like jewellery? Or something she can display, maybe? A penguin figurine that looks like Iwa-ch– ack!”  
  
“She’d be happy with anything,” said Iwaizumi as Oikawa hid behind Matsukawa.  
  
They walked around a little more, prodding at nice things in gift shops that they thought an older crowd would like, and eventually settled on a small but beautifully carved wood sculpture of an elegant carp, with an idiom engraved alongside it that wished good health and prosperity.  
  
“If you squint, the fish looks like Iwa-chan too,” Oikawa stage-whispered to Hanamaki and Matsukawa, as Iwaizumi paid for the sculpture with their chipped-in money.  
  
Matsukawa gave a snort of laughter and Hanamaki stage-whispered back to Oikawa, “If you keep this up, he’s going to leave you here”, just as Iwaizumi looked over his shoulder to glare at them.  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“Since you’re nearly third years, you should think about who you want as your next captain and vice-captain,” advisor Irihata-san had told the second years. “I won’t make the decision for you, unless you ask me to, but I think you can figure it out on your own.”  
  
As they sat together in a group on the sidelines, several of the second years admitted that they wouldn’t be re-joining the team, come third year. The handful that would be re-joining—with the exception of Oikawa, Iwaizumi, Matsukawa, and Hanamaki—didn’t look completely convinced of their decision, either. The only unanimous decision they made, was that Iwaizumi would be either captain or vice-captain.  
  
“Then, Oikawa for captain,” said Iwaizumi firmly, and they all looked at him and then at Oikawa, most in mild surprise. Oikawa just looked impassive.  
  
“I second that,” said Matsukawa quietly.  
  
“Third,” added Hanamaki.  
  
The other second years turned the idea of Oikawa being captain over in their minds: he was the most hard-working of all of them, reliable in his own way, charismatic, extremely observant, and an excellent strategist. Iwaizumi being vice-captain would mean that there was always someone to rein Oikawa in if the occasion called for it, and despite whatever grief Iwaizumi gave him about having a supposedly terrible personality… Oikawa as captain soon seemed obvious.  
  
It was decided.  
  
“I’ll do my best to make you all proud, then,” said Oikawa, straightening his back and lips quirking into a humble smile.  
  
There was a moment—just a spark, a split-second—that made them almost shiver; an intensity out of nowhere despite the serene look on Oikawa’s face, and a reassurance that their decision was indeed a good one.  
  
“I had a feeling it'd be you two. Captain Oikawa Tooru, and Vice-Captain Iwaizumi Hajime,” said Irihata-san, smiling when they told him of the new appointments. “They have a nice ring to them, don’t you think? Congratulations, we’ll be counting on you both.”  
  
Oikawa and Iwaizumi exchanged grins—increasingly excited, energised, dreaming of grand stages, of taking on the world—before straightening up in front of him and chorusing, “Yes, sir!”  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
Iwaizumi’s aunt—a short, round, middle-aged lady with greying hair and what was possibly the warmest smile any of them had ever seen—gave a soft shriek as she spotted Iwaizumi, grinning and bowing his head sheepishly at her, and she hurried down the path leading into the traditional-style inn and threw her arms around his middle in a rib-crushing hug.  
  
“ _Hajime!_ Oh, _look_ at you! You’ve become so handsome and tall!”  
  
“Tall?” Matsukawa and Hanamaki muttered to each other in very quiet unison, attempting to hide their smirks.  
  
“Hello, aunty,” said Iwaizumi, returning her hug. “Sorry it’s been so long.”  
  
“Oh, don’t be silly! You’ve had to deal with school, and we’re not exactly down the road from you.” His aunt released him and patted his cheeks fondly, before peeking around him. Her eyes widened. “Is that _Tooru?_ Oh my _goodness_ , look at that face!”  
  
“Hello, Maeda-san,” said Oikawa with a grin as he obligingly bent down a little so she could hurry over and hug him too. “I hope you’ve been well.”  
  
“Can’t complain, can’t complain. Oh, _Tooru_ , I was so happy to hear that Hajime was bringing you along this weekend, I haven’t seen you since you were in junior high! Look at you, you’ve become such a beautiful boy! ”  
  
“We’re reminded every day,” Hanamaki whispered to Matsukawa, who bit his lip and tried not to snicker.  
  
“And you two must be the special guests!” Maeda-san hurried over to Matsukawa and Hanamaki, who bowed low to her. “I’m Maeda Ayami– oh my goodness, you’re both so tall!”  
  
“We’re just two grateful friends, imposing upon your hospitality, ma’am,” said Hanamaki with rarely-heard politeness. “I’m Hanamaki Takahiro.”  
  
“I’m Matsukawa Issei. Please excuse us, Maeda-san,” Matsukawa added. “We’ll be in your care.”  
  
“Such gentlemen!” Maeda-san beamed and patted their arms. “No need to be so polite, friends of Hajime’s are always welcome here.”  
  
“That sort politeness coming from those two is so _creepy_ ,” Iwaizumi whispered to Oikawa, who mimed shivering.  
  
After presenting Maeda-san with their wood sculpture gift, to which she made a fuss about how they _shouldn’t have, thank you so much, it’s absolutely beautiful, look at all these details, I’ll definitely show this off on the front desk in the foyer, Hajime you’re family so why on earth did you think you needed to bring a gift, you’re always welcome here, every one of you_ , she quickly arranged for two of her workers to take their bags into their rooms, while she shooed the boys into a dining room inside the inn for lunch, where she had prepared a feast for them. They sat comfortably at the table and ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the mouth-watering array of steaming meats and fish and vegetables, all arranged so beautifully in their respective plates and bowls that it almost seemed a shame to eat them.  
  
“So, how did you two meet each other?” asked Maeda-san as she spooned rice into bowls for them, using her wooden shamoji to indicate to Matsukawa and Hanamaki, who exchanged looks.  
  
“He hit me in the face with a volleyball at our first club practice session,” said Matsukawa, and Maeda-san gave a trill of surprised laughter.  
  
“It was an accident!” Hanamaki spluttered.  
  
“Iwa-chan had to take Mattsun to the nurse’s office,” Oikawa told Maeda-san, “and I had to sit with Makki until he calmed down, so I guess that’s how they started talking—it was thanks to us.”  
  
“Unfortunately, they became really good friends after that,” Iwaizumi told his aunt, deadpan. “They’re both complete pains in the neck, so they really suit each other.”  
  
“You _willingly_ hang out with us pains in the neck,” Matsukawa pointed out as Maeda-san laughed.  
  
“Birds of a feather…” Hanamaki stage-whispered.  
  
“And are you two going to Tokai University with Hajime and Tooru?” asked Maeda-san. “Hajime, it was Tokai, wasn’t it? In Tokyo?”  
  
“That’s right,” said Iwaizumi, nodding.  
  
“Matsukawa and I are going to Tohoku University,” said Hanamaki. “Close to home.”  
  
“So you’ll be separated, then?” said Maeda-san, now looking a little sad. “Make sure you all keep in touch, you’ll be missing each other very soon.”  
  
“It’s hard to miss pains in the neck,” said Iwaizumi with an exaggerated sigh. Oikawa nudged him with a little smile on his face, and Matsukawa and Hanamaki mimed throwing their chopsticks at him. Maeda-san smiled.  
  
“You say that now, Hajime, but you’ll see.”  
  
“I know,” Iwaizumi murmured.  
  
Maeda-san left the room to let them eat, occasionally dropping by to see if they needed anything else or any more food. Nobody brought up the topic of university after that.  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“Tomaki dropped out,” Oikawa said as he slumped next to Iwaizumi at their usual lunch spot at the school rooftop. He looked dejected, tired. “It’s just the four of us third years left, now.”  
  
“We’ll be enough,” said Iwaizumi firmly.  
  
“Tomaki was the _tallest_ ,” said Oikawa. “We still need him to be a middle blocker, but he won’t hang around for the March preliminaries.”  
  
“I’m right here, you know,” said Matsukawa mildly.  
  
Oikawa looked startled for a moment. “S-Sorry Mattsun, that’s not what I–”  
  
“Nah, it’s okay.”  
  
“I–”  
  
“It’s fine, I’m kidding. Are you gonna eat your milk bread, because if not, Hanamaki’s gonna–”  
  
“ _Nooo!_ ” Oikawa quickly ripped open his milk bread’s packaging and shoved a huge bite into his mouth, and Matsukawa and Hanamaki grinned at him.  
  
Oikawa’s words stuck with Matsukawa, though, and it was easy to tell by the way Matsukawa threw himself into block practise with more intensity than ever, as though he were afraid of losing his spot as a regular starter.  
  
At the end of practice one day, when everyone had been dismissed and their kouhai had left the gymnasium, Oikawa saw that Matsukawa was still standing on the court beside a net that hadn’t yet been taken down and taking a quick drink break.  
  
“Mattsun,” said Oikawa, “What are you–”  
  
“Oh, hey. Are you free? Hanamaki’s just gone to the washroom, so when he’s done, toss to him so I can practise blocking for a bit, okay?”  
  
Oikawa blinked in surprise. “Um. Sure?”  
  
Matsukawa wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, then put his hands on his hips and sighed. “You’re right, you know.”  
  
“What?”  
  
“Now that Tomaki’s gone, I guess that makes me the main middle blocker, which means that I need to get my shit together. If we have new first year middle blockers, I can’t let them see me slacking off.” Matsukawa paused for a moment and pursed his lips together as he collected his thoughts. Oikawa waited patiently, before Matsukawa continued, “We’ll be third years in just a few more months. I don’t think it’s really sunk in for me yet, so I keep thinking it’s okay if I take it easy. So—captain—if you see me not meeting our standards, I’m going to have to trust you to kick my ass back into line.”  
  
Oikawa just stared at him, until Matsukawa looked away awkwardly and bounced a volleyball against the floor to give himself something to do.  
  
“Now that you’ve told me that, I’m definitely not worried,” said Oikawa at last, with a smile. “Honestly, I think you’ll end up kicking yourself back into line, even before I’ve realised anything. I’ve really underestimated you, Mattsun. I’m sorry.”  
  
“It’s fine, just help me with practice.” Matsukawa grinned at him, and held out his hand in a fist, and Oikawa tapped it in a fistbump.  
  
“You can come out now, Hanamaki,” said Matsukawa loudly towards the entrance of the gymnasium. There was a pause, and then Hanamaki poked his head around the door frame.  
  
“You were having a moment, so I didn’t want to disturb you,” he said, having the grace to look slightly embarrassed. “Hey, Iwaizumi, they’re done. We can go in now.”  
  
“Iwa-chan!” said Oikawa in happy surprise when Iwaizumi followed Hanamaki inside. “I thought you were meeting with Ito-sensei.”  
  
“Something came up, so we rescheduled,” said Iwaizumi with a shrug. “Come on, let’s do this. We’ll make it harder for him with two spikers.”  
  
“ _Bring it,_ assholes.”  
  
“That’s the spirit Mattsun! But, not the ‘assholes’ bit. Keep that away from the first years,” said Oikawa, scooping a volleyball off the ground and jogging into position. “Let’s go!”  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“Too much food,” Hanamaki muttered as he and Matsukawa entered Iwaizumi's and Oikawa’s room. “ _Amazing_ food, but god, I ate so much.” He unceremoniously flopped down on the floor where Iwaizumi was rummaging through his suitcase, to use his shoulder as a headrest. Matsukawa followed him closely, resting his head on Iwaizumi’s other shoulder as Iwaizumi protested that they were both too heavy.  
  
“How’s your room?” asked Oikawa, looking up from the map and brochure in his hands.  
  
“Nice. Comfortable. It looks the same as yours, though,” Hanamaki answered.  
  
“By the way,” said Matsukawa, grinning, “Hanamaki’s mother really did pack extra pairs of underwear for him.”  
  
Oikawa snickered into his map, and Hanamaki launched himself at Matsukawa, accidentally kneeing Iwaizumi in the ribs in the process, and the three quickly delved into a play-fight.  
  
“So the plan for today is,” said Oikawa, after Matsukawa, still laughing, ducked to hide behind him as Iwaizumi seized Hanamaki in a headlock, “that we drive to Shobo-ji Temple first and have a look around, then we’ll drive to the Samurai Residence Museum and have a look around there–”  
  
“I think it closes at four, but we should have enough time,” said Iwaizumi, pointedly ignoring Hanamaki clawing and slapping at his arms and making muffled sounds of protest against Iwaizumi’s ribs.  
  
“–and then come back here for dinner. Tomorrow morning, we’ll visit the Fujiwara Heritage Park and then walk around town, and then come back to help out at the inn a little. Then, the day after _that_ –” Oikawa’s face broke into a grin as his friends gave good-natured groans, and Iwaizumi finally released Hanamaki from his grip, “–just because we _can_ , we’ll drive north to visit Hanamaki city, then go to Hachimantai city to stop by Matsukawa onsen, then drive to Shimohei district so we can visit Iwaizumi town, and then go to Kamaishi city to have a look at Oikawa ryokan!”  
  
“I know we initially said, ‘hey, let’s stop by Hanamaki city for shits and giggles’, but I still can’t believe you found all four of our names here,” said Matsukawa from behind him, now using Oikawa’s shoulder as a headrest.  
  
“All it took was a little research,” said Oikawa cheerfully. “It’s nice and sort of symbolic, doing this on our first roadtrip together.”  
  
“You know,” said Hanamaki, “we could make this a tradition and do this every year…”  
  
“Hm. Set aside time once a year to go on this same roadtrip,” said Iwaizumi slowly. They lapsed into a pensive silence for a moment, not looking at each other as they considered this future plan: get together like this for old time’s sake. Visit all the places they went to this first roadtrip. Laugh at these places that shared their names. See what had or hadn’t changed as the years went by.  
  
Hold onto this bit of the past as they hurtled into the future.  
  
“Guys, we sound like old geezers,” said Matsukawa, still seated behind Oikawa. “We’re way too young for nostalgia. I only just turned eighteen less than a month ago, give me a break.”  
  
His words broke their slight daze. They looked around at each other and grinned somewhat sheepishly.  
  
“Yeah, let’s get this roadtrip done before we think about future ones,” said Iwaizumi, and the others made noises of agreement.  
  
“Iwa-chan, here’s the route we need to take to drive to Shobo-ji Temple–”  
  
“Okay, we’ll run this by my aunt, too.”  
  
“Come on, Matsukawa, let’s go get our stuff.”  
  
“We’ll meet you guys at the entrance in ten minutes,” said Matsukawa to Iwaizumi and Oikawa as he and Hanamaki stood up and headed for the door. “And no more talking about the future like this! We’re eighteen, not eighty-one!”  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“ _Why_ ,” said Hanamaki, fingers clutched around a cup of coffee poured from a large thermos belonging to Oikawa, “are we in this park at literally _before the crack of dawn_ on a _Sunday?_ Does this park even have a name? Is this even a park?”  
  
“Drink your coffee,” said Matsukawa tiredly as he sipped his own drink. “Oikawa will tell us, and then we’ll decide whether he gets to live after this.”  
  
“It’ll be worth it, I promise!” said Oikawa, far too chipper for not-even-five in the morning. He didn’t look any different from how he usually did at more respectable hours of the day—how did he do that? Oikawa gently nudged Iwaizumi, who seemed to be falling asleep from his spot on the bench, and handed him another cup of coffee, which Iwaizumi accepted with something like a croak.  
  
“What the hell are you planning, Kusokawa–”  
  
“It’s a good location and it’s not too far from our homes,” said Oikawa excitedly.  
  
“ _What_ is?” his friends chorused grumpily. Oikawa just smiled and nodded towards the horizon.  
  
“Look,” he whispered.  
  
Amidst their griping, the sun had begun to rise, lighting up the sky and clouds with a palette of bright golds and soft pinks and purples and blues and however the hell else people described a sunrise, rays stretching around and filling the spectators with a breathtaking warmth that had nothing to do with the sun.  
  
“Isn’t it beautiful?” said Oikawa with a content sigh.  
  
“I guess he gets to live,” Hanamaki murmured. Matsukawa made noises of reluctant agreement, and Oikawa bristled at them.  
  
“We start our third year next week!” he said. “Can’t you all be a _little_ poetic for once?”  
  
“You dragged us out of our warm beds before five in the morning, you should be grateful we’re even talking to you,” Iwaizumi mumbled into his coffee.  
  
“But it’s worth it, Iwa-chan! Isn’t it?”  
  
“Nudge me _one more time_ while I’m holding hot coffee, and I swear I’ll–”  
  
“ _Iwa-chan_.”  
  
Matsukawa and Hanamaki snickered into their own coffee cups as Iwaizumi sighed.  
  
“Yeah, it’s nice. Really nice,” he said defeatedly. Oikawa beamed at him and leaned into the bench to watch the sunrise again.  
  
“Wait for it,” Hanamaki muttered under his breath to Matsukawa.  
  
“Any moment now,” Matsukawa muttered back.  
  
“This will be our last high school year,” said Oikawa.  
  
“And there we go,” Hanamaki and Matsukawa whispered in unison.  
  
“It’ll be our last chance to go to the nationals,” Oikawa continued. “To take down Ushiwaka and Shiratorizawa.”  
  
“We’ll do it,” said Iwaizumi quietly. “This will be our year.”  
  
“Not that I don’t agree,” said Hanamaki, “but you picked a _sunrise_ , to symbolise the beginning of our school year? That’s too much poetry for me.”  
  
“Makki, you’re worse than Iwa-chan!”  
  
“Hey, I gotta win at _something_. Small victories.”  
  
Iwaizumi smirked. “I’m glad you’re acknowledging the fact that you still can’t beat me at anything.”  
  
“Aside from height,” added Matsukawa helpfully. Iwaizumi kicked him, and it was Hanamaki’s turn to smirk.  
  
“ _Aside from that!_ ”  
  
“You’re all terrible,” Oikawa sighed. “None of you have changed since our first year.”  
  
“Are you complaining?” asked Hanamaki, peering at him over the rim of his coffee cup, looking like he already knew the answer.  
  
Oikawa smiled a little as they each turned their attention back to the beautiful sunrise.  
  
“No.”  
  
  
  
—————  
  
  
  
“It’s so beautiful,” Oikawa sighed happily after he looked up at the sound of footsteps against the timber floorboards to see Iwaizumi walking towards him. “It was a really good idea to come here.”  
  
“Mm.” Iwaizumi sat down beside him at the edge of the floorboards. It really was a serene and beautiful sight, like something out of a movie: a clear night sky, a nearly-full moon brightly lighting up the inn’s picturesque garden, and cherry blossom petals falling in the occasional breeze. Iwaizumi couldn’t help but give a content sigh too as they sat there in amicable silence for a little while.  
  
“I’m glad you’re coming with me to Tokyo,” said Oikawa quietly, and Iwaizumi looked at him to see Oikawa watching him with a smile on his face. “I think… I’d be okay if you weren’t, but I’m really glad you are.”  
  
Iwaizumi smiled back. “Honestly? I think I might be the one who’s more glad that we’re going together.” It felt a little weird to think, after having grown up together for as many years as they had, that they would suddenly go separate ways. He wasn’t sure he’d be completely ready for that, at least just yet.  
  
“Iwa-chan! That’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said to– _nooo!_ ”  
  
“Don’t get carried away,” said Iwaizumi as he Oikawa fended him off from ruffling his hair. “It might not work out for me. You’re the one there with the scholarship, but I’m going to have to really keep my grades up.”  
  
“You can do it,” said Oikawa. “I’ll even tutor you!”  
  
“I don’t need you to tutor me!”  
  
“But your English is terrible, Iwa-ch– _gah!_ ”  
  
“ _There_ you dweebs are,” came Hanamaki’s voice from behind them. “We thought you’d snuck out to go sightseeing without us.” They looked over their shoulders to see him and Matsukawa come over to join them. Hanamaki settled down next to Oikawa and leaned his head comfortably on his shoulder, and Matsukawa went to sit on the step below them, stretching his long legs out in front of him, and using Iwaizumi’s and Oikawa’s knees as armrests.  
  
“Oh no,” said Iwaizumi, deadpan, “our peace and quiet has been ruined.”  
  
“Do you seriously think you ever have any peace and quiet to begin with?” asked Matsukawa.  
  
“That’s true…”  
  
“Iwa-chan says all that, but he’ll miss all this noise soon enough,” said Oikawa cheerfully.  
  
“We know,” said Matsukawa and Hanamaki in unison, grinning at each other. Iwaizumi huffed at them but didn’t deny it.  
  
“Don’t worry,” said Hanamaki, “we’ll be sure to pester you as much as we possibly can, wherever you are. We’ll even head into Tokyo occasionally and crash your dorm.”  
  
“Without any warning,” Matsukawa added. He and Hanamaki slapped a low-five, and Iwaizumi groaned whilst Oikawa smiled.  
  
“I think that’d be nice, actually,” said Oikawa quietly. “Don’t be strangers, guys.”  
  
“No need to tell us twice,” said Hanamaki.  
  
They all lapsed into silence for a long while, just listening to the soft chatter and footsteps from other guests that could be heard from inside the building, along with the rustling of leaves from the garden’s trees and the occasional flutter of wings from owls taking flight nearby. It was comfortable, and the closeness between the friends was familiar and warm.  
  
They probably could have stayed that way for much longer, but they had places to go the next day, and rest to catch up on. Staying like this and silently waxing lyrical about their days together that were running out, felt heavy in a way, like if they stayed still for too long and were too nostalgic, they’d never move again, and they couldn’t do that; they had been through too much together to stay still.  
  
“Whelp, I’m going to go to bed,” said Iwaizumi at last, nudging Matsukawa’s arm off his knee. “We’ve got an early day tomorrow. Oikawa?”  
  
“I’ll go too.” Oikawa gently nudged Hanamaki off his shoulder, and the latter made a whining sound of protest, but straightened up. “How about you two?”  
  
“I’ll stay out here for a little longer,” said Matsukawa.  
  
“You can be my new pillow then,” said Hanamaki, huddling up beside him and resting his head on his shoulder. Oikawa and Iwaizumi grinned and turned to head to their room.  
  
“Hey, let’s watch the sunrise the morning after tomorrow,” said Iwaizumi over his shoulder after a pause. “For the sake of… symbolism or whatever. We’ll ask my aunt where a good spot is to watch it.”  
  
“Iwa-chan! You’re a poet at heart!” said Oikawa happily, ducking when Iwaizumi reached out to ruffle his hair again.  
  
“Don’t get used to it. Are you guys game?”  
  
“You’ll have to kick us awake, but yeah, I’m game,” said Hanamaki.  
  
“Me too,” said Matsukawa.  
  
“Goodnight, guys,” said Oikawa and Iwaizumi in unison.  
  
“Goodnight,” Matsukawa and Hanamaki chorused back.  
  
There was a lot that they all wanted to say, but couldn’t find the words to, or maybe they simply didn’t need to: _‘I’m glad we went on this roadtrip together’,_ and _‘you’re all pains in the asses and I wouldn’t swap you for anyone else, ever’,_ and _‘it’s been a good three years’,_ and _‘here’s to many more’,_ and _‘thank you’._  
  
This was enough. This was good.  
  
  
  
—————


End file.
